Vehicle doors are typically swung between fully closed and fully opened positions to permit ingress and egress of passengers to and from a vehicle. A door check system is typically employed to provide one or more intermediate positions for the door for convenience. Traditional door check systems are passive in that there is no active control of the door to hold it in any position.
A problem can arise when a vehicle occupant wishes to open the door and there is an obstacle that is approaching the vehicle. If the occupant does not see the obstacle, the door can wind up being opened into the path of the obstacle. In situations where, for example, the obstacle is a cyclist, this can lead to injury, and damage to the door itself.
It would be beneficial to provide a door check system that is capable of detecting obstacles and of reacting to such detection in a suitable way.